tvs

Game mode on: CNET tests TVs for input lag

You just got a new TV, and the picture looks great. Then, when you pop in your favorite shooter, you notice your kills going down, your aim a step slow, and your sterling record taking hits like a noob wandering through the kill zone.

Do you all of a sudden suck at COD? Maybe. But perhaps your newfound lack of feel is caused by input lag introduced by your otherwise awesome new TV. Input lag is the delay, in milliseconds, between a TV receiving a signal and the results of that signal appearing on the screen.

Those milliseconds don't … Read more

Samsung to unveil 13.3-inch 3,200x1,800 LCD display

Samsung will demo a new LCD screen that would top similar displays in resolution and pixel density, the company said Monday.

Geared for notebooks, the 13.3-inch WQXGA+ LCD display will offer a resolution of 3,200x1,800 pixels and a density of 276 pixels per inch. That surpasses the screen found on Apple's 13.3-inch Retina MacBook Pro, which provides a resolution of 2,560x1,600 pixels with 227 pixels per inch.

The new screen will appear at the Society for Information Display's annual exhibition, Display Week 2013. The event, which showcases display products, is running this … Read more

Samsung buys connected-TVs gaming startup MOVL

Samsung has acquired the team behind MOVL, a company that makes entertainment applications for smart TVs, GigaOm reported Monday.

The 2-year-old Atlanta-based company provides apps for TVs by connecting mobile devices with the TVs, often referred to as the "second screen" experience. These include gaming apps Poker Fun and WeDraw, fitness app SmartFitTV, and social video app WeTeli. Its investors include Mark Cuban, Bert Ellis, and Kris Pinto.

Samsung made the deal official last month, but no terms were disclosed, according to GigaOm. The nine-member team is moving to the San Francisco Bay Area.

This purchase lets Samsung … Read more

Hooked Up: A backstage pass at the tech behind Cee Lo Green's stage show

Welcome to the start of a new franchise here at CNET -- the first episode of Hooked Up! It's the only show where the world of celebrity and technology collide.

This week, Kevin Frazier checks out Cee Lo Green's Las Vegas show "Loberace" and the technology that's involved in creating a massive production that only Las Vegas can do. Cee Lo also talks about his personal health goals, Goodie Mob's comeback, and their search for the next big music artist.

I'll also break down some of the best ways to bring the biggest … Read more

Cheerleader assaults centurion? Must be a new Samsung ad

Selling TVs is hard.

Especially if the medium at your disposal is, well, TV.

Most look somewhat the same. Most seem to do very similar things, which is make "American Idol" look and sound better than it really is.

So one can understand Samsung feeling a touch hamstrung in trying to make its Smart TVs look astoundingly intelligent.

In this case -- thank you, Business Insider for finding this -- not only is the budget seemingly enormous, but so are the ambitions.

There are two ads that feature so many themes and special effects that you have come … Read more

How long will Panasonic keep making plasma TVs?

Panasonic confirmed this week that it's in discussions over whether it will jettison its plasma TV business. For me, it's deja vu as yet another Japanese manufacturer struggles to sell high-quality televisions.

In 2008, the Pioneer Elite Kuro PRO-111FD became one of the greatest TVs ever developed -- and it is still among CNET's reference TVs after five years. But producing the best TV didn't translate to profits, and Pioneer exited the TV market in 2009. The company is now best known for car and home audio.

Television is, pardon the pun, Panasonic's most visible … Read more

Panasonic may part ways with plasma TVs to save self

Although Panasonic plasmas are widely considered some of the best on the market, the company might actually be thinking about getting out of that business.

Panasonic is currently contemplating whether it should leave the plasma business behind, Japan-based newspaper Nikkei reported today, according to Reuters. The move would be part of a broader strategy on Panasonic's part to reduce its reliance upon televisions and fix its ailing operation.

In a statement to Reuters, Panasonic didn't rule out the move, saying that it's "considering a number of options" for its TV business, but so far, "… Read more

Get a 39-inch TCL HDTV for $249.99

There's the TV you put in your living room, the one you splurge on to get a mammoth screen, built-in apps, a top-rated picture, and the like.

Then there's the TV you buy for the basement, the game room, the den, the kids. The one that can get dinged up a little bit and who cares?

This is that TV. While supplies last, TigerDirect has the TCL LE39FHDF3300 39-inch LED HDTV for $249.99, plus around $13 for shipping. The good news: it's new, not refurbished. The "bad" news: you'll have to sit tight … Read more

Apple grabs huge slice of 2012 consumer technology sales

Apple enjoyed a healthy gain in consumer technology sales last year amid a down market.

The iPhone maker took home 19.9 percent of all consumer technology sales in the U.S., up from 17.3 percent in 2011, according to stats released today by NPD Group.

Based on sales, Apple proved to be the top consumer brand for the year, outshining Samsung, HP, Sony, and Dell. Beyond Apple, only Samsung's cut of revenues rose among the five, reaching 9.3 percent from 7 percent the prior year.

Together, Apple and Samsung scooped up $6.5 billion in higher … Read more

The 2013 TVs of CES are bigger and smarter, but what about the picture?

Will flat-panel TV picture quality get even better in 2013?

I'm guessing "Yes" in the case of the Best of CES nominee Panasonic TC-PZT60 and the re-engineered Samsung UNF8500, very likely the two best-performing TVs of 2013 under $10,000.

But those two are hardly the TV hardware poster children of the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show, where all the headlines touted expensive 4K and OLED sets -- still stupid and chronically under-delivered, respectively -- as well as new gadgetry of questionable usefulness. Finger-gesture control, anyone?

I got a chance to see both the Panasonic and the Samsung … Read more